Where Deep Calls to Deep

As the deer pants for [arag – strongly, audibly longs for] the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God? My tears [singular - weeping] have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go along with the throng [sak – multitude] and lead them in procession to the house of God, with the voice of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival. Why are you in despair [hamah – distress], O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope [yahal – wait, hope] in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help [yeshua – deliverance, salvation] of His presence. O my God, my soul is in despair [sachah – brought low] within me; therefore, I remember You from the land of the Jordan and the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar. Deep [tehom – depth, a wave or surge] calls to deep at the sound [qol – voice] of Your waterfalls [sinnor – water that drops suddenly]; all Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me. The Lord will command [sawah – direct, command] His lovingkindness in the daytime; and His song will be with me in the night, a prayer [pillah – plea] to the God [el – mighty one] of my life.          Psalm 42:1-8

Although the above psalm is attributed to the Sons of Korah, a number of such psalms could actually have been written by David and given to them to put to music. One of the most eminent of the descendants of Korah, who was employed especially in the musical service of the sanctuary, was Heman (the singer, 1 Chronicles 6:33). The sons of Heman were appointed by David, in connection with the sons of Asaph, and of Jeduthun, to preside over the music. If it was written by David, as seems most probable, it was with some reference to the Sons of Korah, that is, to those who presided over the music of the sanctuary. It was prepared especially to be used by them in the sanctuary, in contradistinction from psalms, which had a more general reference or which were composed for no such specific purpose.

David characterizes this psalm as a prayer to the God [mighty one] of my life. It begins with his confession that his soul longs for in an audible way and thirsts for God. He wrote in similar fashion in Psalm 63:1, O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; my soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns [kamah – longs] for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Jonah spoke a complementary sentiment in Jonah 2:7, “While I was fainting away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to You, into Your holy temple. The holy temple, the sanctuary, it’s the place of God’s presence, where intimacy is experienced. It is the place where deep calls to deep. This place is not visible, but the believer is brought there as a result of his longing. According to Isaiah 45:3, “I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden wealth of secret places, so that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name. The treasures of darkness are found in secret places.

Deep Things of God

 Paul recognized that all the things God has prepared for those who love Him are available to man only by the Holy Spirit, according to 1 Corinthians 2:9-10, but just as it is written, "THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM." For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths [deep things] of God. The deep things of God speak of the deepest truths of the mind of God the Father on behalf of the ones who have demonstrated a love for God. Paul further declares in Romans 11:33, Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! The Holy Spirit has full access to God’s deepest thoughts and will reveal them to those who long for and thirst after God.

Sudden Storms 

And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?" And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Hush, be still." And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?" They became very much afraid and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?"                       Mark 4:37-41 

In the above account, the disciples in the boat are facing what they believe is a life-threatening event, as the boat was already filling up. It is notable that many of these disciples were fisherman, having spent much time of the Sea of Galilee catching fish. As the psalmist used the metaphor of the waterfalls and breakers to address the deep, it is the sudden storm with a fierce gale of wind and waves breaking that created the depth of the challenge to make the greatest impact on the disciples. They believed this was to be their demise, but Jesus had other plans. Not only did He solve the problem, but He demonstrated His deity by miraculously calming the wind and sea. The deep things of God were on display as Jesus confronted their fears. "Why are you afraid?” The deep things of God go as deep as the believer is willing to believe. To believe God for one’s life is the ultimate faith in God.

Called of God

“Listen to Me, O Jacob, even Israel whom I called; I am He, I am the first, I am also the last. “Surely My hand founded the earth, and My right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand together. “Assemble, all of you, and listen! Who among them has declared these things? The Lord loves him; he will carry out His good pleasure on Babylon, and His arm will be against the Chaldeans. “I, even I, have spoken; indeed, I have called him, I have brought him, and He will make his ways successful.                                    Isaiah 48:12-15

           

Listen to Me, O islands, and pay attention, you peoples from afar. The Lord called Me from the womb; from the body of My mother He named Me. He has made My mouth like a sharp sword, in the shadow of His hand He has concealed Me; and He has also made Me a select arrow, He has hidden Me in His quiver. He said to Me, “You are My Servant, Israel [refers to Messiah], in Whom I will show My glory.”                           Isaiah 49:1-3 

The two passages above address God’s calling, first to Israel and then to the Messiah. The Jews are God’s chosen people, designated as belonging to Him just as the Father and the Son are one (John 10:30). At Pentecost, Peter declared, “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself" (Acts 2:39). In both Isaiah passages, the call is that God provides everything necessary to protect and equip those whom He loves with everything necessary to fulfill His will and make his ways successful.

The call to God is the place where He reveals His glory to the world. In Christ, the glory of the Father is manifested through His disciples: "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one” (John 17:22). That glory produces unity of mind and purpose.

Boasting in the Lord 

For consider your calling [klesis – invitation to the kingdom of God and its privileges], brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble [eugenes – family of high rank]; but God has chosen [eklego – selected for Himself] the foolish things [moros – stupid, moronic] of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, "LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD."            1 Corinthians 1:26-31 

God’s call on the believer has nothing to do with man’s wisdom, strength, background, or personal accomplishments, but dependent completely on God’s selection and choice. He purposely chooses those things for Himself that are not wise, but weak, and unlovely from the world’s perspective. In so doing, He imposes a new value system which nullifies the things that are, and opens the door for the new covenant relationship “in Christ” to integrate Christ’s wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption as the believer’s new identity. In this way, no one may boast, and God gets the glory.

Many Waters Cannot Quench Love

“Who is this coming up from the wilderness leaning on her beloved?” “Beneath the apple tree [tappuah – speaks of the love of Christ] I awakened you; there your mother was in labor with you, there she was in labor and gave you birth [the church]. “Put me like a seal over your heart [sealed with the Holy Spirit], like a seal on your arm. For love [ahbah – covenant love causing loyalty] is as strong as death, jealousy [qinah – intense zeal] is as severe as Sheol [place of the wicked]; its flashes are flashes of fire [passionate], the very flame of the Lord. “Many waters cannot quench [kabah – extinguish] love, nor will rivers overflow it; if a man were to give all the riches of his house for love, it would be utterly despised.” “We have a little sister [Gentiles], and she has no breasts; what shall we do for our sister on the day when she is spoken for? “If she is a wall [separation from the world], we will build on her a battlement of silver [redemption – Finished Work]; but if she is a door [witness of the truth], we will barricade her with planks of cedar.” “I was a wall [set apart], and my breasts were like towers; then I became in his eyes as one who finds peace [justification – Romans 5:1].                              Song 8:5-10 

The Jews saw Solomon’s writings allegorically, comparing Proverbs to the outer court of Solomon's temple, Ecclesiastes to the holy place, and Song of Solomon to the holy of holies. “Shulammite,” Daughter of Peace being the feminine of Solomon, equivalent to the Prince of Peace. She is a vinedresser, shepherdess, midnight inquirer, and prince's consort and daughter; while He is a king in His palace, in harmony with the various relations of the Church and Christ. In the 8^th chapter, she is beginning to experience the deeper chasms of His love. These verses sum up the nature and power of the love depicted in the Song.

According to Ellicott’s Commentary: 

This begins a new section, which contains the most magnificent description of true love ever written by poet. The dramatic theory encounters insuperable difficulties with this strophe. Again, we presume that the theatre and the spectators are imaginary. It is another sweet reminiscence, coming most naturally and beautifully after the last. The obstacles have been removed, the pair are united, and the poet recalls the delightful sensations with which he led his bride through the scenes where the youth of both had been spent, and then bursts out into the glorious panegyric of that pure and perfect passion which had united them.

The references to the new covenant relationship of the believer to Christ, the bridegroom, are profound. The sealing of the Holy Spirit as a seal over the heart and the reference to Gentiles as the little sister reveal the riches of His house for love. The reception of His love brings the believer to the Finished Work redemption of silver and a door to invite others into this fellowship of being accepted in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6). The ultimate conclusion is peace (shalom), a tranquility that promotes rest and blessing. Nothing separates the believer from His love:

But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.                         Romans 8:37-39